Banana Split Bombe

Who knew everyone's favorite split would grow up to be such a looker? Beneath a drizzle of chocolate lie stripes of vanilla, chocolate, and pistachio ice cream, all atop a surprise core of banana cake. Just try telling your inner child to wait for dessert.

For the Hard Chocolate Topping

8 ounces semisweet chocolate, chopped

2 tablespoons vegetable shortening

1/4 cup chopped pistachios, for garnish

Directions

1.
Make the bombe: Spread vanilla ice cream in an even layer on bottom and up sides of a 5-quart heatproof bowl with a 9 1/2-inch-diameter rim. Ice cream should form a concave layer that comes up to the rim of the bowl. Freeze until set, about 20 minutes. Using an offset spatula, smooth the surface of the ice cream layer. Freeze again until very firm, at least 1 hour.

2.
Meanwhile, place chocolate and banana in a heatproof bowl. Heat cream in a saucepan until bubbles begin to form around edges. Pour over chocolate and banana, and let stand for 1 minute. Whisk until combined. Set bowl over a pot of simmering water, and whisk until chocolate melts. Refrigerate, stirring occasionally, until thick and spreadable, about 1 hour.

3.
Spread chocolate-banana mixture in a thin, even layer over entire surface of vanilla ice cream layer. Freeze until firm, about 30 minutes.

4.
Spread pistachio ice cream in a flat, smooth layer over chocolate-banana mixture, but not up sides. Freeze until firm, about 30 minutes.

6.
Place banana cake over chocolate ice cream, top side up, and press gently until cake fits snugly against ice cream. (If vanilla ice cream and ganache layers extend beyond top of cake, trim them with a sharp knife.) Cover with plastic wrap, and freeze overnight (or up to 3 days).

7.
To unmold bombe, dip bowl in a larger bowl of very hot water or use a small kitchen torch to warm outside of bowl. Continue dipping or torching bowl until bombe releases when inverted onto a serving platter. Remove bowl, wipe ice cream drips off platter, and freeze until bombe is very firm, about 1 hour.

8.
Make the topping: Place chocolate and shortening in a heatproof bowl set over a pot of simmering water. Stir until chocolate and shortening melt. Let cool slightly, then slowly pour on top of bombe, spiraling in concentric circles to create a solid center with long drips down the sides. Sprinkle pistachios on top, and freeze until chocolate is set, about 10 minutes.

9.
Run a large knife under hot water, and dry well. Use it to slice bombe into wedges, as you would a cake, wiping knife clean between cuts.

Cook's Notes

We used a KitchenAid 5-quart bowl for this bombe, but any 5-quart heatproof bowl will work. A metal bowl helps the ice cream set more quickly.

Reviews

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How would you rate this recipe?

124

MS12303707

6 MAY, 2017

These Bombe cakes always look great but why can't we get a video of one being put together? There are often videos for the simplest cakes and ice cream cakes but never one showing the various steps involved here. I'm always hesitant to try one because I'm not sure of how easy it might be for a novice. Any possibility in the future? Thanks

It's a bit hard, and you have to make in advance, (I made it a week before, so It only took about half an hour every day-I made homemade ice cream). Also, instead of Pistachio ice cream, I used Dulce de Leche, and it came out amazing!!!!!!
Everyone loved it!!!

just finished making this dessert-I used homemade strawberry ice cream instead of pistachio, true banana spit combo. I made the cake in a 9" cake pan and also used the 5 qt kitchenaid mixer bowl, but found I needed to trim the cake to about 8" for it to fit inside the vanilla and ganache layers, so that it would be hidden inside the ice cream. Next time I will bake cake in an 8" pan. Otherwise it would be ice cream on top of the cake, with the cake exposed. Looking forward to the taste test!

again and for the second time i try a recipe from my favourite site and it succeeds marvelously. the recipe is very easy and the result is wonderfull. i made it in my daughter's birthday and everyone liked it very much and it was a distinguished kind on among other cakes. thank you very much

The recipe is very easy to be successful with and turns out lovely. Make sure you allow the bombe to become VERY firm after you unmold it and allow the chocolate to cool considerably before pouring it on the bombe. Otherwise, the chocolate melts the ice cream slightly and starts to fall off the sides of the bombe. It tastes fine, but you do not get the "WOW" presentation you're looking for.

Amazing presentation and worth the time and effort. Add a small amount of green food coloring to the pistachio ice cream as it will enhance the "wow" factor. The banana and chocolate layer was inspired and tasted amazing. Not crazy about the cake texture. Make sure cake layer is even with the vanilla ice cream "crust" or when you invert the cake will peek out the bottom. Overall, one of the best desserts I have ever made.